Railway motor bus



May 22,1928. 1,670,907

. v O. J. SKOOGLUN RAILWAY MOTOR BUS *Filed April 1e. 192s :s sheets-sheet' 2 w, aucuns! May 22, 1928.

o. J. sKooGLuN RAILWAY no1-on sus :s sheets-sheet 3 y Filed April 16, 19,25

INVENTOR 0. .Z'SCOO zum,

Patented May 22, 1928.

f UNITED"STATES OSCAR J. SKOOGLUN, 0F ST. PAUL, .MINNESOTA- RAILWAY Moron nos.

'Application filed April 16, 1925. Serial No. 28,537.

My bus coaches for passenger and freight or express service and is particularly adapted to a peculiar construction wherein the railway motor bus is made up of a car having one or more road busses secured thereto. The motor bus'is detachable from the railway ear in any suitable manner, so that the bus can be driven on the road just the same as any ordinary automobile bus and, in fact, the =bus has every appearancey of the ordinary automobile bus, which is now used on the highways.

A feature of the invention resides in a railway car designed with bus receiving platforms so that the automobile bus can be driven onto the car platform and secured to the car so as to become a part of the same, thus providing a detachable automobile bus in conjunction with the trucks and framework of the railway car, so that my railway motor buscan be run on regular railway tracks from station to station and as far as may be described.

'l'he invention includes means for providing my railway motor busv with a cab or body portion which is adapted toprovide the accommodations as are ordinarily provided on any railway sleeping car, or chair car where it is desirable'to have rest and wash rooms for men and ladies, so that inl l the course ot'travel the conveniences can be arranged. This construction provides means in connection with lny road automobile busscs so that when these busses are attached to the car frame, after being driven upon the receiving platform and firmly attached to make up a part of the coach, my railway motor bus is complete to give to the passengers every lconvenience possible. Sleeping compartments of the same nature as used on sleeping carsand of an ordinary construction, not shown in the drawings` maybe provided, thus permitting my railway motor bus coach to be operated over a .considerable distance on railway tracks by the power of the automobile busses, to ailord the passengers traveling 1n thesebusses sleeping accommodations the same as on a train and such as has not been possible her'etofore to accommodate passengersl with m the ordinary automobile road busses.

The invention includes the combination of desirable features in making up a railway motor bus coach, a portion of which is 'left upon the railway., track at a suitable invention relates to railway motor waiting platform until the automobile busses which are designed to complete my railway motor bus coach arrive with the passengers, express or freight andas soon`4 as these busses are-securely attached to the end'platforms of the coach and the necessary connections arc made my railway motor bus coach is ready to travel in a very prac-f.

tical manner on the ordinary railway tracks,

'thus providing a very economical and desirable means of transporting either passengers, express or freight giving the convenience being taken directly to the railway coach without having to transfer either themselves or their baggage before starting on a, longer trip in my railway motor bus coach.

My' invention also includes automobile bus means which is adapted to travel over the ordinary roads-and which is adapted vto be .associated with an electrical coach where a trolley is employed or a plow rail systenn so that when the auto bus is attached to the coach the electric propelling means can be used to carry my coach over the railway tracks in a very practical manner. It is quite important to consider at at a small cost and 'this time that my railway coach is very desirable to provide means for transporta- Ation in a practical manner-and at a small cost. The features will be very apparent owing to the present day development of good roads and theextensive use of alitomobile busses.

Other features and advantages, together .with the peculiar arrangement and construction of parts, will be more clearly set forth in the specification and claims.

In the drawings forming part of thefspeeiication,

Figure l is a side view of my railway motor bus coach.

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic plan view of the same. v

Figure 3 is a side view of the coach when the motor vbusses are removed therefrom.

Figure 4 is a side view of a form of my railway motor bus coach, showing only one motor bus attached tothe car frame.

A Figure 5 illustrates' my motor bus coach as used with a trolley car where it is propelled by electric current.

Figure 6 is a side view of one of the motor busses 'used" in carrying ontmy invention. Y

Figure 7 is a plan view of the coach illusto the passengers of for. a third f lll trated in Figure 5, diagrammatically illustrating the same.

In the drawings my railway coach A is provided with a central coach portion B and the end coach portions C and l).y The portions C and D of the coach A can be made up of the coach or body portion of automobile busses 10 and 11 respectively. In some forms of my coach A only one bus, such as C,

1s used, or similar'to the automobile bus 10, which is illustrated inl Figure 6. In this construction the other portion of the coach A, such as E, is of any suitable coach cony struction inside, to provide a ladies comand it is obviously not essential that they be illustrated in detail in the drawings.l

In this construction where the coach A is electrically propelled onD the railway tracks 18 the bus C is secured in any suitable manner, not illustrated in the drawings, to the coach body E and the bus is supported on the platform.` 19 so that the automobile bus 10- or C is ready at all times to bediseng aged from the coach E and driven olf of the platform 19 by its own power onto the roadway.

Obviously the bus C is not driven oil of the platform 19 until the coach A has been stopped at a .suitable unloading platform, such as 20, illustrated yin F igurc' 3 of the drawings. Theplatform 20- is onl illustrated in part in Figure 3 andl this p atform can be.,.of any suitable construction to merely provide a track or platform means so that the busses can be driven onto. or o'i ofthe i platforms ofthe coach A.

`Inthe drawings in Figure 1 I have illustrated the coach A with two bus receiving platforms 21 and 22 on either end of the car A, while the` central portion B -of the coach A is formed integral with the frame 23 and sol as to `form a vpermanentpart therewith. The busses 10 and `11 which form the portions C and D of thecoach A are secured to the permanent portion BV when the coach is `made u p ready totravel on the tracks 18,

-so thatethe side appearance of the coach is as illustrated in Figure 1.

By means o f suitable connecting shafts 24 the motors of the busses 10 and 11 can be connected to the trucks25 of the car A, in

" Figure 1, and thus the coach A can be driven 'on the railway track by its own power. This means of4 connection is only illustrated diagrammatica'lly asit isnevident that any suitable connectin means can be provided to drive the tru s 25. I desire to have it understood that the coach A is self-propelled to provide an economical 'means of driving the same and when the automobile busses 10 and 11 are removed the coach A would appear as illustrated in Figure 3, with only the central portion ofthe coach such as B sup,- ported by the frame 23.

The drive shaft of the motor truck can be disconnected and the universal joint at the transmission of the truck is connected with the shaft having another universal joint which connects with the truck to' drive the truck. It is also apparent that eachof the trucks may carry an electric motor andl that the gas engine of the busses can operate a generator which feeds currentthrough a con.l troller to theI respective, motors on therespective truck.

The central portion B of the coach A in this construction is divided voff into compartments 26 and 27 which provide ladies and menswash rooms very similar in construction asvare Iused on sleeping cars of railway trains. The compartment B also is formed with suitable waiting room in the vbody of the same between the compartments 26 and 27, so that passengerscan come into the waiting room 28 and remain unt-il the busses 10 and 11 are in place, ready to operate the coach A. Entries 29 are provided on either side of thecoach portion B, so that the waitingy room 28 can be entered from either side of the same.

Utl

This' means of construction provides' a portable waiting station which can be parked on aside track or in any suitable place on the railway track 18 to await the arrival of the busses 10 and 11, and when the car A is made up completely by the coach portions u B, C and D the same is ready to travel as any other railway coach, exceptin being propelled by itsown' powerv on t railway tracks.- This provides a very desirable means of transportation as erate.

Suitable. entries are provided in the coach portions C and such as 30, which communicate with corresponding openings inV the it-il leconomical to opg lll ends of the compartment B of the coach A so that passengers from the coaches C and D can enter the compartment B at any time. 20.

Obviously-,the automobile` 31 canbehso constructed as toprovide sleeping berths at night and thus the coach can travel day or night, either lon or'short distances over the railway tracks. he railway companies fully appreciate my railway motor bus coach as a feasible meansof competing,v with ordinary 4 automobile busses which now travel over the roads and highwa s. The advani tage of my inventioiris t at I provide ai railway coach having every convenience of the modern means of transportation for pasfor transportation by sengers,y in. railway coaches, and yet I linand by w cluidethe automobile busses which are readvenience o ily detachable'so that they can travel freely It is apparent that tl over the highways or roads and pick up established itself as a ve passengers, bringing them from the hotel of transportation and direct to the coach without transferring certain,inconveniences t either their baggage or themselves, so that such as sno when the parts of my coach are connected dent that t together the passengers can leave their of transportation un home, be picked up on the road at any point and over night where over which my busses are adapted to travel, to rest while traveling w be carried from their hotel or in fact stituted by ordinary hig from any place that may be desired, and as bile bus travel, th soon as they step into the busses 10 or 11 ence-can be provid they are practically boarding the coach or car, even giving as it 1s not necessary for them to again tures as are illustra transfer until they reach Vtheir destination. ofthe drawi lfVhen the coach A reaches its destination of heat, light travel over the tracks 18 it is stopped and by passengers, means of the unloading platform 20 the well known auto busses l() and 11 drive off of the plattrated in detai means of transportation but I accomplish a of the automob feature which has not been done heretofore practically to provi transportat' dance with the p in so far as-I know.

In carrying out my invention I provide a. In accor form of freight or express car which can be have described used independently of the passenger cars, or of my in combination with the same. .In Figure t derstood that theisep I illust-rate a motor bus 35 which is of` ordisections, nary, well known construction and similar pelled an to the auto busses l() and 11 which' is supthe othersre ported by the platform 36 of the lcar F. car supported The car F is similar to the car A, excepting construction, that it maybe used for passengers and articular format freight or express or for freight and express illustrative and. diagr alone, without using the passenger busses in invention can be connection with the same. and applie The car F is provided with a central cab Set. forth within-t portion Gr` provided with similar accommo- Claims. dations as the compartment B and of a simi- I claim lar nature, excepting where freight is used 1, A 1-l in the busses 35 the compartment Gr is of less a car frame, t expensive construction. The compartment frame, an G is mounted upon a frame 37 which carries curing sai the platforms 36 on its ends. The car F- is form a par supported by suitable trucks 38; One of the being propell platforms on the car F is empty as illustrat- 2. A means o ed in Figure 4, while the loading platform` railway car made up 20 is in place ready to receive either a simiof said comp lar bus 35 or abus similar to 10 or 11. In connection wi this manner I vhave clearly illustrated my ing from either en invention to point out fully the novel means of said compar o f transportationeither of passengers or exbody port'io press and freight by means of separable and automobile independently operable automobile busses, means for attachin which can be connected together in an easy of said per and practical manner, so as to make up my that the bodie railway motor bus coach. This provides form an extension means oftransportation which combines the ment and means c railway car and tracks'with the automobi e mobile bus means, so as to meet the popular demand busses w hich the pas f the railway tra w and other c he railway tracks pr der certainfcon the passengers desire hich cannot be subhway and'automo` n convenibus coach Bil'- 5 anfl'l g` the necessary r conveniences to the of ordinary canot illusbut which rrying out the most essential des the separation fra-me ed in my motor the observation car tedin Figures all of which are construction and ar l in the drawings, forms 21 and 22 and take the passengers provide essential featur vdirect to their homes or hotels. In this my invention, t C manner I not only provide a most desirable part thereof, which inclu ile busses from the cardel every convenience for atent statntesfIf les of operation have it unon of the coach in Y sections being self-prof busses, while Y y of the frame and l0( trucks of ordinary I have illustrated .a is only atl thethe princip tion and I some -of the d 'forming-'highw y main as a par ion of these ammatic an d out by other means han those above f the following d bus to said frame ed bysaid a f automobil biisses wher ill drive sai automobile lmotor bus sengers with the convel on long trips. tomobile bus has ry necessary means hile it meets wtn hrough bad weather, onditions, it is evio vide means ditions otor bus coach including s for supporting said bile bus and for sein a manner to ch, said coach utomobile bus'.

tation including a f and the ether s being made up o e bus cars, sai

f-propelled, said busses to the ends fixed compartment, so d automobile busses e central compart- -wth said autoeby the motors of sai d railway car.

f the 3. A railway motor bus coach includinga central compartment, a frameadapted to support saidcompartment, railway trucks adapted to support said frame, automobile bus receiving platforms formed on said frame on either end of said central compartment, means for lsecuring'said automo- Lbilebusses to said central compartment ini a manner so that the same can be readily de-l tached from'said supporting platforms and means for driving the'trucks of said coach vby the motors of said automobile busses.

car for transportation infel-udin supporting trucksya waiting compart'megnt\clfoi'ne'd o'said car andmeans on said car for receiving' an automobile to support the same in a manner so that the car can be driven by said automobile bus and so that saidV automobile bus can .be disengaged from saidcar and run independently upon the highway.

5. An automobile railway car including a compartment supported on railway trucks, and an automobile bus detachablyxse'cured tosaid compartment in a,l manner-to be driven independently lover a highway or supported by and forming a part ofv said railway car to provide means oftransportation over railway tracks or on a. highway 'and a portion of said car forming a portable waiting station when the automobile is-detached therefgnn.E

o soAR sKooGLUN. 

